Andrea Tripp

I had never exercised very seriously or even on a regular basis. Doing something like CrossFit seemed like a far stretch for my capabilities. When I first heard about CrossFit I did a lot of reading on the main site and blogs of CrossFitters. These people were strong, motivated, knowledgeable and enthusiastic about exercising which is exactly what I wanted. Getting healthy and strong was something I wanted in a big way. I was at a point in my life where I was pretty unmotivated- no exercise, no energy, and discontent. I wanted to change that and needed some inspiration.

I love double unders. I clearly remember the first one I ever did for two reasons. One I had a coach cheering very loudly for me and it was actually the first skill I had practiced and did successfully. It felt absolutely amazing to get my first one and to this day I am still thrilled when I do them.

I realized last year my experiences snowboarding and kicking around the soccer ball could be way more enjoyable if I had more stamina and strength. Snowboarding, my legs got tired so fast and I just didn’t have the strength to trek between trails. I was almost too wiped out to enjoy the experience! The same thing was happening with soccer: I was worn out after running around for only a short time. I wanted to really get out and enjoy myself no matter what fun physical activity it is.

I’m already challenging myself more. I just ran a 5k which I was too afraid to do before!

I like pull ups. I had never done a pull up before or even thought I could do one. Now I can do them and I’ve seen the most progress with this more than anything.

It’s pretty surprising to me what I have achieved. I never would have believed I could push myself as hard as I have… but Eric, Stacy, and JT believe it. When they believe I can do it, push harder, and get one more I believe them- even when I want to give up and my limbs feel as though they might not want to cooperate. It’s made a huge difference for me having that constant encouragement. I love being coached by all of them.

I love being surrounded by people all working very hard to get stronger, faster, and better. I’m motivated by them to get better too. We’re all in the workout together pushing ourselves as hard as we can- it’s an awesome feeling! Even though I have a long way to go to get the proper form down, it makes feel strong just lifting that bar and saying things like dead lift, press, push press, jerk, front squat, back squat, OHS, clean, snatch! It is impressive to me.

I like lifting with the barbell. Outside of Crossfit, I’m the only girl I know who lifts. For me it’s different, fun and challenging.

I think having a healthy image of beauty is very important for women. I desire to pass this healthy image along to younger kids – especially my sister who is still only a teenager. Bombarded with unhealthy messages about what a beautiful woman really is, I’m scared she’ll buy in to it. I want her to continue to grow up with the confidence to achieve her goals and a strong sense of well being. I think I’m setting a great example for her by making this commitment to my health. I think Crossfit strongly encourages a healthy beauty image for women and I absolutely love that.